Engine Temp

[brethy]

Please could someone tell me what effect the auxillary booster heater has (if any) on the engine temperature. My booster heater is not working and I am currently waiting for a new one to be fitted but I've noticed that if the blowers are on high then the engine temp doesn't increase (normally sits at 90) and if the engine temp is already at 90 and you turn the blowers up then the engine drops down to 50 degrees. Is this normal and if not will it change when the booster heater is fixed?.

 

Ps Sorry if it's a stupid question but I need to know if it's a fault.

 

Pps. Thanks for all the info about aux heaters I didn't even know I had one until I read the posts.

 

 

Thanks in advance.

[burundi]

I don't know that much about engines at all but I can't imagine the coolant quickly loosing 40 degrees simply because the blower is on.

 

Over what time period are we taling about, 2 mins, 5, 10 30?

 

Perhaps over an extended period the blower could take enough heat out the coolant but with the engine running and _some_ load being placed on it there should be enough heat generated to keep it above 50.

 

But then again, I could be completely wrong :/

[johnb80]

Yep, that sounds about right. The diesel is so efficient that it doesn't have sufficient waste heat to keep the cabin warm. The booster heater is there to help the engine warm up and to provide the additional heat as and when required. Last year I did a journey over 80 miles in sub zero temps outside, the booster heater was still running when I arrived.

 

Regards - JB

[dave_m]

If your booster heater is not working then a drop in temp will occur when the blowers are on (more noticeable in extremely cold weather).

 

I had a similar problem where as soon as I start moving the temp dropped down to 50. It turned out that the ford mechanic who last worked on the car left out the thermostat. If i sat in traffic temp would creep back up to 90 but as soon as i started to move it would go back down again.

 

now i have fitted a thermostat temp sits at 85-90 and drops a bit lower if i have the blowers on full blast in very cold weather.

 

If i remember correctly the booster heater only helps out until the coolant temp hits 75 degrees.

 

hope this helps :blink:

[brethy]

Thanks very much for the replies, I was hoping it would be something like the blowers drawing the heat away from the engine, Burundi the temp drop took about 5-7 mins in slow moving traffic but was very noticable i could watch the needle moving!. Hopefully when the new aux heater is fitted it should be running as normal, it will be nice to have some heat as it's freezing in the car at the moment :blink: .

 

Dave, just out of curiosity would I be able to see the thermostat to make sure I've got one, please bear in mind I am just a female :blink: .

 

Thanks again. :)

[dave_m]

no you cannot see the thermostat as it is inside the engine you need to take a part of the cooling system off to see it, another way to know if there is one fitted or whether it is jammed open is to see if the radiator gets warm quickly i.e when the gauge has not yet hit 90. Mine used to start to get warm straight away.

 

The thermostat lets water pass through the radiator once the engine has reached it normal operating temperature, i think the thermostat is set at about 87 degrees.

[johnb80]

just a female :) .

 

just a female...... does that mean you're almost a male? :)

 

If you start the engine the radiator should not get warm for quite some time, if you look at the temp guage when its halfway between 0 and 90 deg put your hand carefully on the radiator (big black thing across the front with a big black pipe going into it at one side). If it feels pretty warm there's a good chance you dont have a thermostat fitted or it's stuck open, if it's cold it's likely it's fitted and working correctly.

 

Regards - JB (easily a male :( )

[Ogben Schmutzel]

Yunno with all their marketing and everything its a wonder that Tesco's haven't spotted a niche in the market here and got a few shelves devoted to Aux Heaters at this time of year!!

 

Either that or driving coats, gloves, ear muffs, thermal socks .... furry hats .....

 

Cheers.

Oggy.

[burundi]

Well I had no idea diesels were that heat efficient, I'm learning more about the bus all the time :)

[johnb80]

It's obviously good in turning fuel into motion, any heat created is a waste of energy, less heat means more power :)

 

Regards - JB

[brethy]

Thanks once again for the replies I was watching the temp guage carefully today and with the blowers on auto (temp 26) it sat quite happily dead on 90 degrees it's only when you turn the blowers onto high the enine temp drops so it seems to be working ok. I'll let you know what happens when I get the new aux heater fitted.

 

John thanks for the tip on the radiator I'll try that tomorrow and I'm definately 100% female, just a little dizzy a times :lol:

 

 

Thanks

[katman]

Burundi the temp drop took about 5-7 mins in slow moving traffic but was very noticable i could watch the needle moving!.

I think I prefer that to sitting in traffic watching the needle hit the red :lol:

[soptom]

Brethy, if you didn't have a thermostat or if it was stuck open, I'm pretty sure that with your diesel it would take an absolute age to warm up (on the temp gauge). If it was stuck closed, you'd see overheating problems. I wouldn't worry about a thermostat too much unless you see either of these.

[brethy]

Thanks Soptom it was rather alarming to see it dropping at such a rate, as long as it stays around 90 or I can explain the drop I'm happy. Incidentally when you say "absolute age to warm up" what time frame would you say as it does take a while from cold?.

 

Thanks :lol:

[Masked Marauder]

I drove 10 miles to work this morning, booster heater working, and the temperature never went over a quarter of the way up. At running temperature it is in the centre. That was at speeds of up to 70mph, total drive time is about 10 minutes

[brethy]

Many thanks MM that seems to agree with my own findings, I can't wait to get the booster heater fitted so I can see what difference it makes, I'm soooo grateful to this forum as I would never of known about it otherwise and we're now getting it mended under warranty :lol:

 

Ta again.